Cooking with BTS: the K-pop stars to have their own variety show

The news was announced in a briefing by the group’s parent company, Big Hit Entertainment

BTS performs "Fake Love" at the Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Sunday, May 20, 2018, in Las Vegas. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
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There is a lot of new content coming for K-pop fans. Everything from a BTS television show to a K-pop mobile phone game and brand-new bands are in the works, according to one of the music genre’s biggest companies.

In a recent corporate briefing, Big Hit Entertainment unveiled some of the initiatives it aims to roll out over the next two years.

Some of these moves will centre on its roster of stars, while others will see the creation of new boy and girl groups.

When it comes to its marquee signing BTS, chief executive Bang Si-hyuk said the group would take part in a new television programme.

Coming out next month, In the Soop, BTS will show the lighter side of the septet with members cooking up favourite dishes, joking around in the studio and indulging in some kayaking.

The show continues what has been another strong year for BTS that includes the four million copies sold of latest album Map of the Soul: 7, the anticipated release of English-language single Dynamite on Friday, August 21 and a new album before the end of the year.

Is Seventeen the next BTS?

When it comes to the next global K-pop star, Si-hyuk says the future could belong to the 13-piece boy band Seventeen. Big Hit Entertainment have a stake in Pledis, the agency that manages the group.

Describing the band as the company’s "next mega IP," Si-hyuk said that group's trajectory is similar to BTS's "two or three years ago".

The event also revealed that TXT, the boy band Big Hit Entertainment created last year, will drop a new album before November.

New groups will also be formed: a boy band will created from the winners of this year's television talent show I-Land, as well as a girl and boy group to be launched in 2021 and 2022 respectively.

The company also plans to wade further into the digital space with an online game featuring music from its in-house talent. The untitled project will be released before the end of the year.

The corporate briefing is another display of confidence by one of K-pop's leading names as it prepares to go public on the Korea Exchange.

The company recently passed preliminary measures imposed by government authorities. Big Hit Entertainment has reportedly made 294 billion KRW (Dh910m) in the first half of this year.

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